Homeschooling Through College

Did you know that nine out of ten Christian high school students will leave the
church by the time they are sophomores in college? (McNeal, Reggie. The Present
Future: Six Tough Questions for the Church. Jossey-Bass, 2003, p. 4.)

If that statistic surprises you, you’re not alone. Homeschool parents devote
years to developing the spiritual, moral, and academic integrity of their children.
They made the choice to homeschool due to plummeting academic standards and harmful
social influences in public schools. Yet after graduation, many parents automatically
commit their students to a four-year college where everything they worked so hard
to instill is threatened and even destroyed.

Considering our culture’s emphasis on having a college degree, homeschool
families might see no other choice than to send their child to college. After all,
a college education is the best way to ensure financial and vocational success,
right? Thanks to recent technological advances and changes in the way we view education,
the answer is quickly becoming no. Many homeschool students are finding
that earning a college degree through distance education is a comparable, and even
better, way of achieving their academic goals.

So what is distance education, anyway? It is the process of earning an accredited
college degree by self-study through the mail or over the Internet instead of attending
classes at a traditional institution. Earning a degree in this way offers a number
of benefits, including a more positive spiritual and moral atmosphere, more vocational
opportunities during school, and a chance to graduate without the burden of student
loans.

Take a Step Back

Before considering distance education, take a step back and decide whether a college
degree is right for you. Cafi Cohen, author of The Homeschoolers’ College
Admissions Handbook, once observed, “College has been the default
button on our child-raising menu for too long. It is almost a mantra in our society
. . . We have reached the point where most families routinely push their children
to attend college regardless of their sons’ and daughters’ interests,
talents, and occupational goals.”(Novak, Claire. “Transcripts, CLEPs,
and other ways to get into college.” The Old Schoolhouse Magazine.)

Don’t be fooled: A college degree is not required for vocational and financial
bliss. A degree can help your career, but it’s no golden ticket to a dream
job. Many people swallow the college recruiters’ pitch that a degree will
guarantee you a Ferrari and early retirement on a sundrenched beach in Bermuda.
It does not. Hard work, determination, and a willingness to think outside the box
are what count in the long run.

If a college degree is necessary to achieve your goals, go for it, but many careers
do not require a diploma. Some of the world’s wealthiest individuals—including
Bill Gates and Michael Dell—dropped out of college to pursue their dreams.
In some cases, earning a college degree may actually be a hindrance to vocational
and spiritual development. If God is leading you in a direction other than college,
obey His voice.

What’s Better about Distance Education?

For those who choose to attend college, the next question is whether distance education
is better than tried-and-true alternatives. After all, why should students forfeit
the chance to get “the college experience”? Why should parents shelter
their children and prevent them from wetting their feet in the real-world atmosphere
of the college campus? Why should families forfeit the opportunity to be salt and
light on a secular campus?

There are a number of reasons, but we will touch on three main areas of benefit:
vocational, financial, and spiritual.

Vocational

Homeschoolers recognize the importance of self-motivation. While teachers in a classroom
setting often baby-step students through the learning process, homeschool students,
especially those in high school, must cultivate discipline and perseverance in order
to learn. That’s one of the many benefits home education offers.

Distance education fosters this same attitude of self-motivation in learning. Instructors
are typically hundreds of miles away. Students are responsible for effectively managing
their study schedules without the structure of a classroom. This system more accurately
reflects a real job. Employees are responsible for time management and must take
initiative to avoid a pink slip.

Another vocational benefit of distance education is more free time that can be used
to pursue an apprenticeship or internship. Online study provides the flexibility
to arrange your schedule around other activities that will further your career and
life goals. A traditional college setting, with its inconvenient class schedules,
shuts down many of these avenues. Gaining real world experience is a big plus after
graduation, since most hiring managers place a premium on it. According to a survey
by the National Association of Colleges and Employers, 38 percent of college students
who interned at a company while in school ended up working full-time at the same
company after they graduated.(National Association of College Employers. “Internships,
Co-op Experience Valuable to College Graduates.”)

In our experience, combining school and the right mix of job opportunities can help
jump-start a career. While Matthew was enrolled in a distance education program
at Thomas Edison State College in New Jersey, he began an apprenticeship at a local
software development studio called RoleModel Software headed by a Christian homeschool
father. Over the following year, Matthew gained on-the job experience in software
development while studying in the evenings. During his sophomore year in college,
Matthew joined a much larger company, SAS Institute, and was hired as a full-time
developer before graduating from college.

Similarly, David is currently pursuing a degree in communications while being a
contributing editor to two statewide public policy organizations. A flexible schedule
allows him to pursue various freelance writing opportunities and learn about the
world of journalism by actually participating in the field rather than simply studying
about it. This tactic has also allowed David to develop an extensive portfolio of
published work.

With the swiftly changing job market, experience is now at a premium. A college
degree will get you only so far. If an employer sees that you have firsthand familiarity
with your chosen field, he or she is far more likely to push the “hire”
button since a degree coupled with experience is far more attractive than a degree
by itself.

Financial

Gas prices may be going through the roof, but that’s nothing compared to what
parents will be plunking down to send little Tommy or Mary through college in another
decade. Currently, one year at Harvard costs around $40,000. That’s a decent
chunk of change. Without a good scholarship, college bills have the nagging tendency
to take up residence in your spare bedroom.

In our borrow-happy society, it’s little surprise that two-thirds of college
graduates have student loans. According to a study by the National Postsecondary
Student Aid Study, the average student loan is nearly $20,000. (The SmartStudent
Guide to Financial Aid. “Student Loans.”) That’s a hefty amount
of debt to be saddled with, especially for a young person facing the possibility
of marriage and child-rearing in the near future.

Credit card debt is another major issue. Numerous studies show that most college
students graduate with thousands of dollars in credit card debt. Adding high interest
rates to the mix does not create a pretty financial picture. Even Christian college
students who have been trained in the virtues of stewardship and self-control may
fall prey to the enormous pressure placed upon them to “swipe the plastic.”

This raises another harmful effect of the cost of higher education—its impact
on family finances. While college students may graduate with heavy debt burdens,
research shows that students’ families suffer as well. According to the study
“Paying for College: The Rising Cost of Higher Education,” families
in New England are devoting an average of 33 percent of their yearly income to meeting
tuition and college-related expenses. (Harvard Graduate School of Education. “Study
Shows New England Families Paying a Third of Income on College.”) Even for
those families that have prepared years in advance, college expenses are still inordinately
high.

What’s the solution? While distance education still hurts the wallet, tuition
is more on par with what you’ll pay at a community college. In addition, distance
ed enables you to pay as you go by working a job related to your field of study.
Imagine graduating from college with a surplus in the bank rather than burdensome
student loans that may weigh you down for years. Distance education helps you achieve
that goal.

High tuition isn’t the only financial pitfall you’ll avoid. There are
many other expenses you won’t face: dormitory or apartment costs, parking
permits, gas for driving to and from school, and traveling expenses to visit parents
during holidays and vacations, among others. Think of distance education as your
“stay out of debt” card.

Spiritual and Moral

Perhaps the most important reason for choosing distance education is avoiding a
poisonous campus atmosphere that harms students’ spiritual walk and moral
integrity. One of the primary reasons parents choose to home educate their children
is to avoid the secular teaching and corrupt social life of public schools. But
when it comes to college, a large majority of parents mechanically commit their
children to institutions of higher learning, overlooking the deleterious environment.

Some parents, even those who have chosen to home educate, feel the need to have
their children attend traditional college in order to get a taste of the “real
world.” Such a viewpoint ignores the plain truth that college is not the real
world. Often, students’ parents pick up the tab for tuition, dorms or apartments,
food, clothing, transportation, entertainment, and a number of other expenses—hardly
a reflection of real-world living in which individuals are responsible for meeting
their own financial needs independent of their parents. In addition, the social
atmosphere among most students is far removed from the responsibilities and obligations
of day-to-day life in the real world. Far from teaching independence, traditional
college often fosters dependence on others to finance what many students view as
four years of “living it up” before true adulthood begins.

For homeschool parents, one of the most alarming aspects of traditional college
should be the rampant liberal and atheistic philosophies on campuses. Nowhere else
in American society is there so large a conglomeration of authority figures who
reflect hard-held atheistic and socialistic views of the world. For Christian homeschoolers,
the question is simple: is exposing yourself to the instruction of anti-God individuals
five days a week God’s will? Proverbs 13:20 says, “He that walketh with wise men shall
be wise: but a companion of fools shall be destroyed.” Being
a witness for Jesus Christ among the lost is critically important, but is subjecting
yourself to four years under the authority of an atheist faculty really the best
way to do it?

Unfortunately, most Christian students in the polluted atmosphere of college life
do not yet possess the moral and spiritual fortitude to stand up against much older,
smarter, and more powerful adults. Even Christian and conservative professors are
routinely persecuted for their beliefs. If these instructors can’t exercise
freedom of thought, what makes you think an 18-year-old freshman will be exempt?

Aside from teaching hostile to Christianity, the average campus atmosphere is hardly
conducive to spiritual growth. Take binge drinking as an example. According to a
study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Harvard School of
Public Health, college students spend a yearly average of $5.5 billion on alcoholic
beverages. The same study revealed that around 600,000 assaults occur on college
campuses each year as a result of drinking. (Dees, Matt, and Jennifer Brevorka.
“Colleges find drinking deeply rooted.”)

Campus crime is also rampant. According to the Central Michigan University’s
Sexual Assault Peer Advocates Group, the risk of being raped is four times greater
for college-age women than for any other age group. (Morrison, Chloe. “Sexual
assault awareness.” The University Echo Online.) Is it responsible for Christian
fathers, who are obligated by God to protect the purity of their children, to send
their daughters into such a setting?

Everyone knows colleges are hardly the safest and healthiest environments in the
country, but aren’t Christians supposed to enter the dark places of society
to witness to the lost? By staying connected with a local church community and protecting
their moral character from the damaging influences of the world, students have a
greater opportunity to reach out without suffering the consequences of continually
being in a polluted atmosphere. The example of Jesus Christ is clear: The Lord and
His disciples went into bad places to witness, but they did not “hang out”
there and continually expose themselves to sin, and they certainly didn’t
spend years under the tutelage of pagan philosophers.

What about Christian colleges? The statistics shared above undoubtedly do not apply
to Christian colleges and universities. Although campus life might be better, however,
the financial and time requirements of traditional Christian colleges are still
high. This is another reason to choose distance education rather than traditional
college.

Conclusion

The responsibility for education lies with the student and not with the teacher.
Society has flipped that around in recent decades, but homeschooling has begun to
correct that shift. Distance education is merely one additional avenue that continues
the correction through college. After pursuing degrees through distance education
ourselves, we firmly believe that distance ed is a positive and realistic alternative
to traditional college, especially for homeschoolers.

We encourage you to learn more about this exciting form of learning and make an
educated decision. The Internet contains a treasure trove of resources to help you
locate and apply for distance education programs, communicate with others who have
earned or are pursuing a degree this way, and search for other alternatives if college
is not the right option for you.

The positive aspects of homeschooling need not be erased during the college years.
By taking an unconventional approach to post-secondary education, students can retain
their spiritual and moral convictions, minimize or avoid college debt, and graduate
with real-world experience in their chosen career field. This is another area where
homeschoolers can spearhead a countercultural revolution that changes the way society
views education.

Homeschool graduates Matthew and David Bass are committed to informing others about
the benefits of homeschooling through college. Their blog about distance education
is located at www.TheDistanceLearner.com. Additionally, Matthew has developed a web-based
service to make creation of high school transcripts easier for college-bound homeschoolers.
It can be found at www.teascript.com. While attending college online, David is a full-time
freelance writer with work featured in numerous publications. He blogs at
www.DavidNBass.com.

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